Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions to Guide Planning for Ageing Population

Data gathered from the 2026 Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions (JSLC) will help to guide the Government’s planning for the country’s ageing population.

Speaking at a recent Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Think Tank, Director of Policy Research in the Social Policy Planning and Research Division of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Suzette Johnson, said that the survey’s findings will help to identify the circumstances affecting Jamaicans across socioeconomic groups, including measures to strengthen pension and social protection coverage for older persons.

“Keep in mind that the population is ageing and there are provisions that the country will need to make in order to cater to the needs of the ageing population. Those in the working age group, those in the elderly population, there are interventions that will need to be planned with all socioeconomic groups in mind,” she said.

Mrs. Johnson noted that one area examined through the survey is participation in pension programmes, pointing out that existing data indicate that approximately two-thirds of the elderly population are not in receipt of a pension.

“Now, you can just imagine with an ageing population that this is of concern,” she said.

She noted the JSLC also seeks to understand why persons may not be contributing to a pension programme.

“We do not only ask about if you receive, but we ask about reasons why you may not have been contributing to such a programme. Your responses will help us to craft interventions that speak to your specific situation to help increase the proportion of the population that can be enrolled on a pension programme,” she said.

Mrs. Johnson told JIS News that the information is important, as the country seeks to ensure that Jamaicans have protection against loss of income in old age.

“It is important that there is provision for protection irrespective of your level of earning or how well you are doing as a family,” she pointed out.

“We want our elderly persons to maintain their levels of dignity. In order to do that, we want to ensure that you’re making provisions from you are part of the working population so that as you get older, you can feel more secure about the quality of life that you will enjoy,” Mrs. Johnson added.

The JSLC, done in collaboration with the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN), collects data on various aspects of living conditions, including income, employment, education, health, housing and social protection.

The information is used to support national policy and programme planning.

The survey for 2026 began on September 16. The JSLC has been conducted since 1988.